Paid Sick Leave: What Does Your Local Jurisdiction Require? And Other FAQs

For many employers, complying with state paid sick leave requirements may not be enough. Even employers that are exempt from state requirements may be subject to local paid sick leave obligations since many local jurisdictions have enacted their own paid sick leave laws. Meanwhile, a few local jurisdictions don’t require paid sick leave specifically but instead require employers to provide paid leave that employees can use for any reason, including illness. Two local jurisdictions require both paid sick leave and paid leave that employees may use for any reason. To help you navigate this landscape, here are answers to frequently asked questions about these requirements.

Which local jurisdictions require employers to provide paid sick leave?

Twenty local jurisdictions have their own paid sick leave requirements. With limited exceptions, these local paid sick leave ordinances generally cover all employers with employees performing work in the jurisdiction, although the amount of leave and certain requirements often vary by employer size.

The following local jurisdictions require paid sick leave.

* The city of West Hollywood requires employers to provide full-time employees with up to 96 hours of paid leave per year that they can use for sickness, vacation, or personal necessity. If the employee exhausts their paid leave, they are entitled to up to 80 hours of uncompensated leave for their own sickness or a family member’s. Part-time employees are entitled to prorated amounts of paid and unpaid leave.

Which local jurisdictions require employers to provide paid leave that employees can use for any reason?

Like a few states, some local jurisdictions have enacted laws requiring employers to provide paid leave that employees can use for any purpose, including illness, rather than having a specific paid sick leave requirement (or in addition to a specific paid sick leave requirement). These local jurisdictions include the following.

• West Hollywood, California. As mentioned above, West Hollywood requires employers to provide paid leave that employees can use for sickness, vacation, or personal necessity.
  
• Chicago, Illinois. All employers with at least one covered employee working in Chicago must provide employees with paid leave that they can use for any reason, including illness.
  
• Cook County, Illinois. All employers with at least one covered employee working in the county must provide paid leave that may be taken for any reason of the employee's choosing, including illness.
  
• Bernalillo County, New Mexico. All employers in unincorporated areas of the county must provide paid leave that employees can use for any reason, including illness.

What happens if both a state and local sick leave law apply to my employees?

Employers may need to coordinate compliance with both laws. When a state and local law both apply, employers generally must comply with whichever provision provides the greater benefit or protection to the employee, while satisfying all nonconflicting requirements of both laws.

Employers should review both laws carefully, provide employees with the greatest protection required by each applicable provision, and consult legal counsel as needed.

My company is located in a city that doesn't require paid sick leave, but I have employees who work a significant portion of the time in a city that does. Am I required to provide these employees with sick leave?

In most (state and local) jurisdictions, coverage depends on where the employee performs work rather than where the employer is located. Therefore, these laws may apply to you if you have employees working in a covered jurisdiction, even if your business is located elsewhere. Check your applicable law and consider consulting with legal counsel to confirm which requirements apply to your business.

Can employees use paid sick leave as soon as they are hired?

Not always. While employees typically are entitled to begin accruing leave immediately, some jurisdictions permit employers to impose a waiting period before newly hired employees may use accrued leave. Requirements vary by jurisdiction.

How much do I have to pay employees when they are out on sick leave?

These laws generally require employers to compensate employees for sick leave at their normal rate of pay. Most jurisdictions also have specific rules for determining an employee's normal rate of pay for sick leave purposes.

What happens if employees don't use all of their sick leave by the end of the year? Do I have to carry over the unused sick leave to the following year?

These laws generally allow employees to carry over unused sick leave to the following year. However, many laws have a cap on the number of hours employees can carry over.

In some (but not all) jurisdictions, employers can use the frontloading method instead of the accrual method for providing sick leave to employees. Under the frontloading method, employees receive all of the leave to which they are entitled at the beginning of each year. Some of these jurisdictions don't require employers to carry over unused leave to the following year if they use the frontloading method. Check your sick leave laws for any rules on frontloading.

Conclusion

As paid sick leave requirements continue to expand at the local level, employers shouldn’t assume that complying with state law is enough. Local ordinances may impose additional obligations, apply different coverage thresholds, or require paid leave that employees can use for reasons beyond illness. Because coverage often depends on where employees perform work, even employers located outside a jurisdiction may be subject to its requirements.

To help maintain compliance, employers should regularly review the laws that apply to their workforce, update leave policies as needed, train managers on applicable requirements, and monitor developments at both the state and local levels.

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